Watch out, it's hot
by YourCupOfTea20
Summary: When Scorpius Malfoy gets abducted, single father Draco Malfoy and Scorpius' teacher Hermione Granger do everything they can to get him back.
1. Chapter 1

_**All characters belong to JK Rowling, I wrote this just for fun, as a big Dramione shipper. English is not my first language, so please bear with me :) Enjoy!**_

**Chapter 1**

She knew something was wrong. She knew she should have trusted her gut feeling, she learned that in the war. The reason she didn't was clear enough, she didn't want it to happen. It was the reason she chose this job. A teacher didn't fight, she used her wand to clean up spilled ink and for other basic skills, she wasn't even allowed to teach the kids magic. She knew how to react to accidental magic. However, she didn't know how to react to this, the war was 6 years ago, she was still a brilliant witch, no one could deny that, but she was not prepared for this.

He was gone, it was her fault. She was feeling weak, her soft hands were looking for some support, but she was standing in the middle of the dark room, out of breath and panicking. She could still hear him screaming in her head.

She felt her muscles clench up when he barged in, his heavy breathing and red eyes letting her know he's not mad, but raging. He was losing his control she thought he always had. Malfoy's didn't show emotion, but right then and there, he was showing every spark his mind and body were undergoing. She couldn't blame him, she was going through the same storm, he might not think they were, but she knew. She had a special bond with Scorpius, no one could deny that. "If something happens to him count yourself dead, Granger" he whispered, she could feel the sincerity in his voice, but she understood. "I'm so sorry, I don't know how..." before she could finish her sentence, his trembling voice interrupted. "I... I don't blame you, but we have to find him, I will never be able to forgive myself, you have to help me, please" he begged, a tear falling down his pale face. "Of course, I am the one responsible for him here... I am so sorry." She said before her voice gave up on her. Here they were, standing in front of each other, crying, feeling broken. Scorpius was gone, taken away from them. She blamed herself, and he blamed himself. Maybe they were both to blame.

"We don't have a second to waste, Granger. Tell me exactly what happened first. We have to find him." he said, his brain trying to gain control over his powerful emotions. He was building his wall, she could feel his discomfort from having shown any emotion. He made the small adjustments making him a Malfoy. His hands stopped trembling, but she could see him holding them in fists. His stance was straight, radiating power. His face, previously showing all these emotions, turned stone cold. He made eye contact, his eye were dark grey, just like Scorpius' she just noticed.

She told him, every little detail. "I apparated to the school gate at around 7.00. It was closed, but I could feel some magic lingering around, I should have trusted my gut, Malfoy, I'm so sorry." She told breaking down again, she was trembling and the tears were filling her deep brown eyes up.

"Granger, get yourself together, we don't have time. So you felt traces of magic? What more?" He asked with a strong voice, the sadness disappeared, but it made the way for angst and determination.

She continued with a trembling voice, "I did, but it wasn't powerful, I thought it might have been parents apparating here early and trying to access the building with magic or something. When I went inside everything was normal. I organized some documents in the teacher's room and put the kettle on for some tea. A few minutes later Scorpius and Mr. Dowell apparated outside." she explained thinking hard, he noticed her eyes focus on his shoulder, trying to think of every small detail. He was grateful for that.

He chose her for a reason, for this reason. He never thought it would happen with a teacher like Hermione by his son's side, but maybe he expected too much, the war was already 6 years ago. He was sure she still had amazing dueling skills, and her brain works harder than the average witch or wizard, but maybe he expected too much. Maybe it was all his fault.

"He left Scorpius with me, it was not different from any other morning. He did his routine protection spells, while I made a cup of tea for Scorpius. We said goodbye, and he left. I was still busy with the documents and told him he was allowed to play in the classroom if he wanted." She sniffed, blaming herself for leaving the small kid alone. She has to stay strong, for Scorpius, for Malfoy. "I could hear him making car noises, that's when I suddenly heard a pop, it was exactly an apparating sound, but I thought it was impossible, the wards are set by Harry, Ron and myself. I still don't know how... but then I heard him screaming my name..." She was tearing up again, too emotional to talk. She felt his cold hand on her shoulder. "Breath, Granger, you can cry after we find him. Please get yourself together, we need to find him." She could feel the sincerity in his voice, she was grateful for him not blaming her fully. For not killing her on the spot.

"He screamed, the lights went all off. The building was pitch dark, and Lumos didn't work. I don't know how they did it. The light of outside didn't come in, not even a stray of sunlight, I don't know. I was trying everything I could, I was running to the classroom. But that's when I heard another pop. I think they might have put a silencing charm on him, I didn't hear him after screaming my name. It was completely dark, I did the emergency spell, two seconds later you came. When you opened the door the darkness went away. I thought they might have broken the apparating wand, but I knew they didn't when you came running through the gate. I don't know how they did it, I'm sure there is no way around it. But I heard the pop two times. It all happened so fast, Malfoy. Not even a minute." She finished her story, still trembling and feeling lightheaded, but this wasn't the time for weakness.

"Pack your stuff, close the school. I'll make sure every parent gets an owl and the kids have a place to go until Scorpius is back." He was thinking hard, she had seen this expression multiple times before, back in Hogwarts. It was when they were competing for the highest grade, and she subtly took a peek at him, seeing him thinking hard, working the same expression on his face as she did to solve difficult questions.

She thought back at how this all started. Harry and Ron became Aurors after the war, she went back for her seventh year. She knew she didn't want to fight anymore, she didn't want anything to do with darkness and hate. Malfoy came back to finish his education too, not having to serve time in Azkaban. The hate he used to have for her wasn't there anymore, but they were not friends either. Amicable might be the correct word. A small nod to each other when passing in the library was the relationship they had. Soon they graduated. She became a teacher, educating students before they started Hogwarts, she loved her job. Small kids showed so much character already, she mentally sorted them in houses. Most of the time she was correct, sometimes she was shocked by the results or just guessed wrong but agreed with the sorting hat. Just like the time she was sure the most cunning and ambitious student she ever taught, Ada, was not sorted into Slytherin but Ravenclaw.

That was until Scorpius was enrolled. She always thought the rich and elite wizarding families chose to educate their children privately, hiring a teacher for every subject, so she was shocked (to say the least) to hear that Draco Malfoy chose her small school to send his son to. Well, she knew he didn't think she was a filthy mudblood anymore, but she was sure someone like Malfoy would have given his heir the best education possible, and he had the money for the best private tutors in the world. Her school was doing great, Hermione was the brightest witch of her age, and famous. Who wouldn't want their children to be taught by the smart war heroine? But she knew this was not the reason Malfoy chose her school, she couldn't think a valid reason either. Maybe he just wanted his child to be normal. As far as being the son of the richest man of Britain normal one could be.

In his last year of Hogwarts, he inherited all the investments of his father. Hermione was sure it was difficult for him, but he was raised to be the future heir, so maybe it wasn't as much of a shock for him as one would think. He was very successful, doubling the net worth of the Malfoy company. He was an entrepreneur in flesh and blood and a very good one.

She was very shocked to read in Witch Weakly that he was going to be a dad at the young age of 20. Only two years after the war, a year after he graduated Hogwarts. No one knew the identity of the lucky lady, only learning it was Astoria Greengrass after the news came out she died giving birth. Hermione felt some grief for her former classmate. Losing a loved one, raising a small child alone at 20 years old is challenging she's sure. Especially running the biggest company in Europe at the same time. That's when all the news about Malfoy stopped. He was always a private person, even if he chose to show off his wealth in his youth, people change, people grow.

The day she learned that the five-year-old Scorpius would become her student, she was shocked. Her school in London was too successful. So she chose to teach at a second smaller school, having a closer, much more personal relationship with the children and parents is what made Hermione a teacher at the best of her abilities. When she first met Mr. Dowell, she was impressed with the grace and power he radiated, when she learned he was the personal assistant, the right hand of the one and only Draco Malfoy it all made sense.

She was not scared, but one could not blame her for being distressed about the situation. It didn't make any sense. Malfoy never came to school himself. Mr. Dowell, well, she got the permission to call him Alexander, but she only did it when they were alone, was the messenger, the one she had parent meetings with. "Why?", she had asked, too curious, "Because Mr. Malfoy is a very busy man, trusting your ability to teach his son the knowledge and giving him the space to evolve his own personality." Mr. Dowell had answered. Back then she was impressed and grateful in a way that Malfoy would trust her enough to let his son spend 8 hours a day in her school, in her class. In the back of her mind, she knew there was another reason, one she wasn't allowed to know, and she didn't want to know.

It was confirmed when she met Scorpius for the first time, Mr. Dowell wouldn't leave without special protection spells, ones Hermione never heard of. She was not happy with it at the beginning, but she understood. Malfoy was just too powerful and wealthy, and with that came enemies.

She knew she can not have any favorites as a teacher, but the bond she had with Scorpius was different from the one with her other student. He came an hour too early every day because Malfoy and Alexander start their day at the office way too early. She didn't want to accept it at the beginning, but she started her day at the school way too early as well. They would have a cup of tea together, play or read. The small routine they formed was great, Scorpius was exceptional for his age, the conversations they had were not ones all five years old would be able to understand or follow. She knew Astoria was not the best student back in the day, so maybe his intelligence was something little Scorpius inherited from his dad. The small boy had the typical Malfoy look, his blonde hair was styled perfectly every day, his robed were made of the most expensive material and the way he holds himself was a five-year-old displaying what self-confidence is, just like his mom and dad used to do back in the day. His eyes were hazel on the outside, turning to a dark grey towards the inside. She couldn't remember if Astoria had brown eyes, but she came to that conclusion as she remembered all the Malfoys had either grey or blue eyes. His facial expressions were much softer than Draco's, Scorpius had them from Astoria for sure. She remembered the time she used to work with her for Potions. Astoria was not how she expected her to be, she thought all Slytherins were rude and stuck up. Astoria, however, was the most elegant, beautiful and polite girl. Even the way she used to cut sheep eyes was graceful, Hermione used to look up at her natural beauty and grace. She was grateful for the witch not hating her for being muggle-born, and not calling her a mudblood. They were not friends, but they got along just fine. Hermione would take the lead, and Astoria just followed her and did what Hermione asked. She definitely saw why Malfoy would fall for her.

Hermione was a bit judgemental when she heard that Scorpius Malfoy was being enrolled. She remembers telling Ginny and claiming she didn't have the energy to deal with a second Draco Malfoy. One could not blame her, she was bullied by him for six years! Ginny had laughed and reminded Hermione that Malfoy changed and the child is not being raised by a father like Lucius Malfoy. Ginny made a point, and she was right. Scorpius Malfoy was the most polite child she ever met. Of course, he's a child and a very smart one for that, so some mischief was normal. But Scorpius always made sure to apologize if caught, to wait his turn before talking, and not forget his thank you and you're welcome's.

He was very fond of her as well, after the 8 months they spend together so closely five days a week. Maybe it was because he doesn't have a mother figure, as far as Hermione knew Malfoy never dated after Astoria. The Witch Weekly would have gone crazy if he did, making him the front page news for sure if he was caught with a female. Hermione and Scorpius bonded really well, and Hermione always made sure to play into the interests of her students, making sure they grew up to become respectful and educated individuals, ready to start their magic education at Hogwarts. She knew Scorpius would do amazing, his magic skills were very outstanding already.

He must be so scared, thinking Hermione didn't save him, not knowing she tried but couldn't. She felt her eyes tear up at the memories of him in his classroom, playing with his friends. The memories of them having tea in the morning and reading a book together, making different noises for each character. She was scared, she felt alone, but she remembered she was not when she felt the boy's father touch her arm and apparating them inside the huge living room of Malfoy Manor.

She was ready to fight, for Scorpius.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Draco was devastated, he felt like an inadequate father, maybe he should have secluded Scorpius, educating him at home with the best teachers in the world. Maybe then he would be safe right now. Looking at the fragile women next to him he knew that was not right. She was a wonderful teacher.

Every night he had to listen to Scorpius, talking about how great Ms. Granger was, how he had learned a new word of the day. "Do you know the word 'humongous' dad? Do you know what that means? Do you know what the Eiffel tower is, Dad? Ms. Granger said it's humongous." he had gone on for hours, just like he did every other day with a new word Granger taught him.

That day, he told his son he indeed knew what the Eiffel tower was, he promised him he would take him there one day. And he will, it's the first thing he'll do after he finds him. He must, it's the only promise he made to Scorpius that he hadn't fulfilled yet. Everyone knows Malfoy's don't make empty promises.

He looked around his lounge, eyeing Granger next to him. She was clearly shocked about the wizards and witches working, trying their best to find Scorpius. "It's has been 2 minutes, how did you get them all here so fast?" she asked, shocked, but glad to see Malfoy had a competent team to help them find him. "The emergency spell, Granger. I clearly told you to use it for the biggest emergencies only, because not only I get a signal, but every person here too. They are the best of the best. So we will find him don't worry." he explained, she definitely didn't understand him seeing how she was staring at him.

"A team, Granger. For when there is an emergency involving my son, just like now. They are healers, curse breakers and aurors, I like to be prepared, especially when it is something involving Scorpius" he explained, "when you told me about what happened they automatically got what you said on a script. They are now trying to figure out who might have done this, how they apparated in the school and got Scorpius. It should not have been that easy." he finished.

"You are prepared," Hermione stated, feeling really uncomfortable about the situation she was in right now "you know this would happen? How could you?" Hermione asked. Tears that dried of a few seconds ago were filling up her eyes again. She could not believe this. She could not understand this.

"Don't make me appear like a bad father, Granger, don't you dare." He said, his voice stone cold. She could feel the atmosphere around them getting intense, he saw her as an enemy at that moment, she knew. He on the other side was feeling attacked. As he was blaming himself for this exact reason too. He knew this could happen, but one could not blame him, as he also did everything in his power to keep his son safe.

"As I said, this should not have happened. Did you ever hear the protective spells Alexander put there every morning?" he asked, his voice much cleaner now, also much softer. As if he was trying to prove to her he was not a bad father. He didn't know he did not have to, because she knew he was not. So she answered, a soft no barely left her lips before he explained further. "It's because those spells date from 1698, it works on Malfoys only. It's one of the strongest protection spells to exist in the wizarding world, they have been trying to make similar ones for general use for over 80 years, but none of the protection spells were as strong as this Malfoy one. My father and I never got this used on us, as it sometimes can do more harm than good, but with Scorpius, I had to. I can't explain what it does right now, but feel free to ask Alexander about it, as he knows as much about it as I do. That's why I have trust in the fact that they can't physically or mentally harm Scorpius, that, however, does not change the fact I want my son back as soon as possible. You also told me they apparated in and out, not only you, Potter and Weasley had anti-apparition wards put up, Granger. While I do have trust in your abilities, I still had the best of the best people put them up around your school building also, even got the best curse breakers trying to get in to make sure they were not any loopholes. It should not have happened, it should have been impossible." he finished, letting out a big sigh, while his outer appearance didn't show any signs of weakness and angst, she could see them in his eyes. It must be true, eyes must truly be the windows of the soul.

"I apologize, Malfoy." She whispered, sincerely feeling bad about the way she made him feel. "I didn't want to make you feel bad about this, I can see you tried everything to keep Scorpius safe." He nodded, accepting her apology.

Before he could open his mouth Alexander walked up to them, "Hermione, if you can come with me for a minute." He asked quietly, she noticed he also tried his best to keep everything together. Hermione and Alexander walked up to a table were two wizards were sitting down.

"Meet Mr. Vangu and Mr. Demor." he said. His hands moving from the small man, Mr. Vangu, to the oldest man she might have ever met, besides Professor Dumbledore of course. He must be Mr. Demor she thought to herself.

Draco also walked up to the table, the two men quickly nodded to acknowledge his presence, their eyes giving them the message they were sorry for what happened. "Thank you for being here." Draco simply stated. The two old men gave him a small smile in return.

"They know about almost every curse, spell, and charm in the world. From the most ancient to the newest ones. Tell them about the darkness in the school." Draco said after they all sat down at the big table, looking at Hermione. She looked at him and then at the two intelligent men in front of her. "I didn't hear anyone, not even a whisper. I heard a pop and then everything went dark. That's when Scorpius yelled for me, but he was also quickly silenced. All the blinds were open. The lights were all on, but the moment they apparated it was complete darkness. I tried Lumos, but not even a speck of light came out." she explained, she was hoping they had an answer for them, and looking at how the two men looked at each other with big eyes, she knew that they did.

"Ms. Granger, did you feel the temperature change when all the light disappeared?" Mr. Demor asked quickly, his gaze rushing Hermione to answer.  
"I don't know, I don't remember as I was panicking" she answered. Both men let out a small sigh, "Why? What is it?" Draco quickly asked.  
"Mr. Malfoy, you're in trouble, the ones who did it are extremely talented, but you're lucky they are not perfect." Mr. Vangu said.

Alexander, Draco, and Hermione stared at the old men, waiting for him to explain further. "It's old magic, Mr. Malfoy, very old and dangerous magic. Tenebris Mortis." Mr. Vangu continued.  
"The dark death?" Alexander asked, looking at Hermione and Draco for confirmation.  
"Yes, an old spell that was originally made for prisoners to torture them. So they couldn't see who hurt them and most importantly to drive them crazy" Mr. Vangu said, looking between Ms. Granger and Mr. Demor.

Mr. Demor took this as a sign to take over the explanation. "It is not the building that went pitch dark Ms. Granger, it is your eyes and mind that were surrounded by darkness. If someone else was in the room they would see everything. You're very fortunate they didn't master the spell enough to make you blind, or to make you feel the coldness it normally comes with. So it definitely was not as strong as the spell should have been. However, it is still very impressive that however did this was able to break the apparating wand and put this spell on you so fast, you're a very strong witch." Mr. Demor finished, showing on his face he still has question marks.

"Why is it impressive they could cast this on me? What has to be done?" Hermione asked. Draco looked at her, he was grateful she asked these questions, as he was too weak to do so. He knew that if he opened his mouth his voice would crack, that he would break down.  
"It's just basic flicks of the wand Ms. Granger, but the spell is long. Very long, I think I remember reading somewhere it took the strongest guards around 10 minutes to get someone blind completely. Sometimes they used to mess up in the middle, and it would fail completely. " Mr. Demor told. "Looking at how you can luckily still see and were not feeling cold, I would assume they got the wand movement wrong. Either by accident or on purpose, as the wand movements are not difficult. However, it is mind breaking how they could cast such a long spell without taking more than a few seconds " Mr. Vangu added.

They both looked at each other and turned towards Draco Malfoy, their looks at each other shows they are on the same page about whatever was going to be said next.  
"Mr. Malfoy, unfortunately, I'll have to let you know that this is not magic a lot of people know about. As far as I know, the exact words of the spell do not exist anymore. The Ministry of Magic has been destroying every evidence of it for over a hundred years. These people must have been planning this for years. I'm scared they might have been looking for a counter curse for the Malfoy protection spells too. As they have shown us how capable they are already." Mr. Vangu said, looking really uncomfortable and sad.

It was when he finished the sentence Draco Malfoy broke down. In front of people, because he didn't care. He was scared, whoever these people are, they broke him, in only 15 minutes.  
When his trembling hands were covered by Hermione Granger's soft ones, it felt like ice cold water was thrown over his naked body. Or like he just woke up from the worst nightmare ever. "Get yourself together Malfoy, you can cry after we find Scorpius. Now is not the time." She said, giving him a determined look. She was right.

**Thank you so much for reading, please feel free to give me your opinion :) I'm sorry for the long wait, but I had a really busy week. I'll try to update more from now on. **


	3. Chapter 3

**"I'll try to update more from now on" - me. **

**Well, that was a lie hahaha. I am so so sorry. I'll make it up to you guys, I promise! :') **

**Enjoy **

The way his eyes clasped her glance made her shiver. His glare was one that could kill someone, taking everything in. She had a special way to read him. It wasn't studying his expressions, no way anyone would be able to do that with Malfoy. It was the feeling she got standing next to him. The energy he radiated to his surroundings, she could feel it very well.

He silently got up. "Please cancel all the plans you have for the upcoming days. I want you all to be directly accessible when needed," he explained calmly, he was holding everything together well for now. "Mr. Vangu and Mr. Demor, if you could please follow me." he requested calmly turning around and walking the two gentlemen to his desk area.

When the three men left, Hermione slowly turned around, giving Alexander a look he had a hard time deciphering. "Alex, Malfoy told me I could ask you about this... I don't want to be..." she was trying to finish up her sentence when he answered. "The Malfoy Protection Spell." he simply stated. They looked at each other for a good few seconds. He was visibly contemplating where to start.

"It's very old magic, protecting Malfoy children from physical and emotional pain. It's very complicated, it will always protect, but you can choose the degree of protection." he tried, not sure if he made any sense as the spell has too much history to explain in one go. Draco himself had to give him all the details when he got the task to make sure the spell was cast on Scorpius safely. It took him almost a week to make sure everything he knew about this rare spell was known by Alexander too.

"What do you mean by degree?" she asked, her face showing she was genuinely interested and scared for Scorpius' safety.

"The spell will almost literally make sure you don't feel physical and emotional pain, so when the spell was first created, it did more harm than good." he stopped for a moment to make sure Hermione was following alright. When she gave him a small nod he knew she meant for him to explain further. "You don't feel physical pain, so the body isn't giving any signs in case it needs help or is badly injured," he said taking a small breath and continuing his explanation "it's very hard to be sure if it can be linked to this spell but... the Malfoy family has been known to be quite abusive. Draco and I have been thinking about it. We think that when they first made this spell and the Malfoy child protected by it didn't react to his physical punishment, it was modified to the way the spell works as for today." he told. "As for the emotional pain, we are not truly sure how strong it is, as we couldn't test it ourselves. But Draco found a lot of old Malfoy diaries explaining that the spell in its original form turned the kids in monsters, not feeling any emotions as consequences of their actions." he finished, only now remembering Hermiones question.

"So that's why the Malfoy family heavily modified the spell. They put degrees in. The first degree is the most dangerous one, how it was originally. Back then it included an object. You put the spell on an object and carry it on you 24/7, it is believed to be the Malfoy ring back in the day. Very dark and old magic, Hermione" he added. Wanting to make sure she understood how dangerous it was, as he knew his explanation didn't do the power of the protection spell any justice.

"The second degree of protection is not carrying the object with you all the time, but making sure you had it on/with you only in a dangerous situation, or when you're extremely scared." he described. "Still very powerful, but not having it on you all the time didn't have as heavy consequences." he finished, taking a small gulp of water. Hermione was clearly very interested in the spell, listening to every word Alexander said with detail.

"What we called the third degree is just saying the spell on the person you want it to affect, as I did on Scorpius. They are actually different sub-degrees in this one as well, which was something Draco changed himself. I'll tell you how we did that another day, as we could write a book about that only." he said, noticing he was drifting away from his explanation, he locked eyes with Hermione and continued. "I did it once a day, as Scorpius is just a small child - I'll explain later," he said looking at the way Hermione frowned when he added that part in.

"Once a day is strong, but still light in a way. The spell lingers over him, doing it every day makes sure that it's there fully, not in bits and pieces, as when you don't do it we think it can wear off. That's why we're so scared and have to find him back as soon as possible, he is safe for now, but we're not sure for how long. It took us ages to make sure it worked and we did a great job modifying the spell, but there still is no concrete evidence of what and how long it will have an effect." he stated, looking at her and giving her a sign that this was it for now.

"Why didn't they do it on Malfoy?" she asked, scared she could be misunderstood. Looking at Alexander she knew he didn't. "Draco never got it done on him as he was safe because of his status, no one would even dare to touch him back in the day. His dad never got it done either, as it was not needed for the same reasons," he answered her honestly. "You have to understand, Hermione, that when Scorpius was born he became Draco's number one priority. He would kill the whole world if that meant Scorp was safe. That's why making sure he could use this spell in a way that he was sure Scorpius wasn't affected in any negative way was so important. I could tell you every little thing we went through, but no one could possibly understand how difficult it was for Draco to get the spell to how it is today. Safe." he clarified.

"I'm sure it's safe, but you said yourself it still can do more harm than good. How strong is it?" she asked, making sure her tone didn't have a negative touch to it.

Alexander looked throughout at Hermione before answering. He could sense where she was getting at. "Draco was adamant about only doing it until he goes to Hogwarts. Scorpius is still a child, and therefore not totally in control over his emotions. That's why he was able to scream, he wouldn't even be scared if we had the spell on him in the first degree or second degree. Scorp still feels negative emotions, but there is a buffer protecting him to a degree. It's the same with physical pain, he won't feel very bad pain, but a little scratch or stub will feel like it does on you or me. It's strong, don't worry." he said, noticing that Hermione got the answer she was looking for.

"Why weren't they able to make one for general use if you were able to modify it. How can it be that complicated?" she asked, trying to understand the power of the spell a bit more.

"It's because it's too old, we don't know who made it and how he made it, there is zero knowledge about it, only the spell exist and we know what it does. The special thing about this spell is that it's a base spell on its own. The only reason we could modify it was because we did it on a Malfoy. The core requirement for the spell to work." Alexander could see this part sparked interest in Hermione's eyes. "A new spell is made by combining base spells together, the core of magic. This one is a very unique one on it own, we only know it was a gift by a nomadic wizard, claimed by the Malfoy family to be so powerful, who might be related to death. We don't have a reliable source for this, so we don't know for sure."

Hermione nodded. "Thank you for explaining," she said, relieved to know Scorpius was safe, to an extent. Just as if they had planned the end of their conversation Malfoy walked in.

"We might have something," he said. He had some paper and ink ready and slowly pushed it in front of Hermione. "Granger, we need a list of every witch and wizard that has ever entered the school building, even before the official opening, so everyone who helped to renovate the building too. Everyone," he said. Alexander and Hermione looked as if he just lost his mind completely. He took this as a sign to explain why he needed all this information. "A portkey." he simply added. The smart witch and wizard looked at him with big eyes. "Godric Gryffindor, how did I not think of that," Hermione whispered, wanting to stand up and hug everyone in the room right then and there. They all gave her a funny look. Draco Malfoy continued "We're sure they have been planning this for ages, so they might have put a portkey there even three years ago. Something not in the reach of people, and with long durability." Hermione and Alexander nodded, that was a plausible answer to one of their mysteries.

As if Draco could read their mind, he proceeded to explain the second big question. "About the darkness. What if it wasn't Tenebris Mortis, but they made their own spell, having the base elements the same as the original? It seems more likely. It was far too weak and fast to be that. They must have created a new one. We got this idea as we were talking about my protection spell with Mr. Vangu." he explained, wanting to hear their opinions about this information, especially Hermione's. Her face lighting up was an opinion enough. She clearly agreed with this being a possible theory.

"Alexander, I want you to come with me and make a list of all possible people who might have done this. Even people who could have the smallest grudge against me or the Malfoy business should be on the list. Please put the most likely people on the top and work your way down." he ordered, showing his natural leadership skills.

"Mr. Vangu and Mr. Demor, thank you, I will contact you soon as I need you, please stay contactable 24/7," he said, giving them the signal they can leave. "The same for everyone else, thank you so much, please keep an eye out," he said sincerely. As everyone was leaving one by one, Hermione stood up, reaching for the paper and ink when a cold hand touched her arm. "Where are you going?" he asked not knowing why she was packing everything up. "I need to go school for all the documents," she answered, a bit confused by his demeanor. "I know you're a very skilled witch, Granger, but please understand it's not safe for you to leave." he tried to explain as softly as possible, knowing she would not agree and would try to leave the mansion. "Please make a list of everything you need from the school and your home, I'll make sure it's here in no time," he added when she didn't give him a reaction.

Hermione was not sure how she should react, because he made sense. He was right. As much as she wanted to go home, she could not. "Can I explain the situation to Harry, Ron and Ginny?" she almost whispered, she quickly added "Of course not everything, but they will not leave you alone if they don't know why I'm not able to leave Malfoy Manor" she explained scared he would not like the idea. He only gave her a small smile and nodded. He knew that would have to happen, no way turning around that.

They all turned around when they heard a black crow ticking on the window vigorously. A letter attached to his leg. It felt as if the temperature of the room dropped all of a sudden. This was definitely not good news.

**Get ready for some action from the next chapter on... ;) **


	4. Chapter 4

Hermione took a look at Draco, a bit embarrassed of the fact that was her first instinct in this scary situation. He was also looking at her, not sure what to do. He walked to the window at a slow pace. Taking the letter from the crow's foot, he opened it immediately, while turning towards Hermione and Alexander. "The crow is under a spell, he didn't blink," he stated calmly. "The way Voldemort ordered letters to be sent," Alexander added looking at Hermione. She was startled hearing this information from him. Not daring to ask right now if he used to be death eater too back in the day. "How else would he know?" she thought to herself.

Hermione took a look at Draco, not able to read the emotions of his face. She wasn't feeling tense standing next to him. She could sense it probably wasn't a letter from the abductors. "What does it say, Draco?" Alexander dared to ask, something Hermione couldn't get herself to do.

_If only we could turn the time. If only we could go back together to how we were. I heard you were doing well, but you knew I would be back. I told you when you left me for her._

_My son is safe with me. Don't worry. Safer than with that mudblood_,_ as has been proven._

_ Meet me at our place in two days, at midnight. Don't try anything, my child will not be there._

Draco read the letter without any emotion in his voice. Alexander too didn't say anything. Hermione felt lost, she was the only one that didn't know what the heck was going on. She looked at the two men standing in front of her. They were looking at each other, clearly talking without making any sound. They knew each other well, too well. And they knew who the letter was from, but no one said anything.

"Malfoy, who is that?" she asked, her voice trembling. She felt so alone, the silence in the room was making her anxious. The second his name left her pink lips both men snapped out of their thought. Hermione then knew. They really were talking, exchanging thoughts. Occlumency.

Alexander nodded. Then they turned around, looking at the lost witch. Draco snapped his fingers, a quill and piece of parchment appeared in his hand. "Write a letter to Potter, the Weasleys and your parents. Only tell the Weasleys and Potter about the situation. Lie to your parents, please." he said. She knew it wasn't a request, but an order. They knew something groundbreaking. "I'm asking Harry for the invisible cloak," she said, trying to give the message out she was going to 'the place' too. He understood her.

_Ron, Harry, and Gin_

_Scorpius has been abducted at school. Don't worry, we're sure he's safe for now and so am I._

_I'm staying with Malfoy in the Manor helping him where I can until we find Scorpius. Please don't worry about me, and keep an eye and ear out. I can't leave, please understand._

_A very qualified team is helping us, and we will not hold back asking for your help too when needed. So please don't worry about that._

_Harry, could you please owl the invisible cloak to the Manor? Just in case._

_Gin, can I trust you with taking care of Crookshanks?_

_Ron, could you tell me if something very out of ordinary happens at work? I'll owl you another letter with information on what to look out for asap._

_Thank you. I'll keep you guys updated. Please keep this information to yourselves._

_With love,_

_HG_

She scribbled down her letter so quick that her neat handwriting was almost unreadable. She handed the letter over to Malfoy. "Now, tell me," she said, her voice telling both men she was pissed off at the fact they were making her wait, and holding a secret conversation inside their heads.

"Not so quick, Granger," Malfoy said. "Are you down for an Unbreakable Vow? You know what it is," he added, taking a glance at Alexander, looking for a sign from him if they were sure this was the right thing to ask and do. "Yes, everything, Malfoy, you already know," she said, disappointed that he would think she wouldn't do everything to find Scorpius. She knew that probably wasn't what they meant, but it still hurt. Draco Malfoy, on the other hand, was moved by her quick decision, she would die for her son. Just like he would, like Alexander would. He knew right then and there Granger would be a big part of his life, of their lives, the one of Scorpius and him.

While Alexander and Hermione sat down at the table, Draco owled Hermione's letter. He then sat down at the end of the table, looking at his two friends. She was a friend know, even if he didn't dare to admit this to anyone yet. "How are you with Occlumency?" he asked her, curious as he had no clue. "I'm a stronger Legilimens than I am an Occlumens, but definitely not the strongest," she admitted. "Show me," he said. She just looked at him. "What?" she let out. "Show me how strong," he said. "Try it on me, Granger. I thought you knew how to understand English. Even Scorp would know what I meant," he added, with a small smirk. Whatever the letter means, it must be good news in a way she thought to herself. She took her vine wood wand with a dragon heartstring core out and said the one word spell out loud. "Legilimens!" her soft voice strongly pronounced. Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Hermione was stronger than you would think, even Harry had a hard time withstanding her. She was amazed, shocked. This could not be possible. She even believed for a second she was a muggle who found a piece of wood and was playing around. "Legilimens!" she tried again, louder, stronger, but again, nothing. As if her magic didn't exist.

"You didn't lose your magic powers, Granger, don't worry." he chuckled. "Wait, you are reading MY mind?" she shouted. "How?" she asked again, in utter disbelief. She knew very very powerful wizards could enter a mind without making any sound, but she always made sure to shield her own mind when entering another one, or trying to enter it in this case. On top of that, she didn't feel him enter her mind or his presence there. She was in complete awe.

"Who told you you're good? Don't tell me you are as good as Potter? I thought he learned from Severus?" he asked her. She could hear from his tone of voice he was not joking, she must be really bad. "Hey, go easy on her." Alexander came in giving a light smile at Granger. "Try it on me, Hermione?" he asked. She shrugged her shoulders. "Legilimens!" she tried as grand as she could. Nothing. "She's not THAT bad." Alexander came to her rescue, "but still a lot of work to be done." he added, she gave him a small frown and smile.

"Alexander will start training you, the key of our success will be communication. Entering each other's mind whenever and wherever, keeping it open for each other at all times, while making sure no one else can enter. It will probably be the most challenging thing you have ever done, Granger. I want you to keep practicing at all times. Once you reached Alexander's level, you'll start practicing with me, so we can see if we can get you higher." he explained. She just nodded, he didn't have to explain, as she knew how challenging Occlumency was.

"How good are you?" she asked looking at Malfoy. He only smiled. "You could give him all the Veritaserum in the world, and he would still lie to you," Alexander explained smiling. "What even is the Imperius Curse," he added chuckling. Hermione could not believe her ears. She was impressed, very impressed.

"Now, time to get serious again." he quickly changed the subject. "The Unbreakable Vow, before we tell you anything," he said looking into her eyes, or what she felt like into her soul. She could only nod.

_Who could the letter be from? And how important can something be to require the unbreakable vow? Find out next week. Tum tum tum TUUUUUMMMM _

_Thank you for reading. Please let me know what you think!_


	5. Chapter 5

Hermione and Draco quietly held hands. Hers was soft and warm. His was rough and cold. They briefly made some eye contact, the one that touches your soul, makes a shiver go down your spine. Alexanders voice came through the tense air, "I'm doing it, you both agree, right? Just making sure." he added before starting the magical contract. They could only nod. Alexander took this as a sign to start. He looked at Draco, who was looking a bit out of it. Very out of it. Before Alexander could say anything he let her soft hands go. Hermione was shocked by his sudden action. "What the hell, Malfoy," she said, confused and a bit scared. "I can't do this to you, Granger. It's too dangerous." He was looking at her, scared. He knew he was taking a big risk, but it felt too wrong to continue. "What do you mean? Don't underestimate me, Malfoy." "I'm not, I'm underestimating her." he swiftly tried explaining. She was bewildered would be an understatement. "I'm really not following, get over with it, Malfoy. You know I would take the risk dying if that means Scorp is safe." "I know, that's the thing I'm worried about, you're too weak. She will kill you without hesitation and Scorpius might still be in danger." "Who is she? Tell me then." "I can't, they will kill you instantly if they know you know." "Who are they, what are you talking about, Draco," she almost pleaded, really getting tired now. He was silent, looking at the ground, his two pale hands leaning on the counter. He was thinking, and that's when he heard Alexander in his mind. "Are you protecting her or putting her in danger not letting her know? You know the answer."

He looked up, his strong gaze gone. Alexander and Hermione both could see how vulnerable he actually was right then and there. The tiredness was visible in his face. He held out his hands, she took them.

"Will you, Hermione Granger, do everything you can to find and rescue Scorpius Malfoy." Alexander's voice filled the room.

"I will."

"And will you, if needed, risk your life to make sure he ends up safe?"

"I will."

"Will you, Draco Malfoy, tell Hermione Granger every information you and I know about Scorpius' history and abduction?"

"I will."

"Will you make sure she knows about everything, even non-related to the case if it affects her safety."

"Yes."

Alexander took a deep breath, the strong magic making him uncomfortable.

"Will you both not share the existence of this vow and the information that will be shared as a result of it with anyone except us three."

"Yes."

"I will."

The feeling of a red hot wire swept their hands together even stronger. The three of them could only look at each other.

It was Draco Malfoy who initiated sitting on the black couch in the middle of the big living room. "It's going to be a long talk." Alexander broke the ice. "Then get on with it." Hermione challenged. Draco could only smirk at her response.

"The letter is from Daphne Greengrass, the sister of Astoria, Scorpius' aunt, my ex-girlfriend. She is the one that has abducted Scorpius, she was also one of the people I was protecting him from.

It goes all the way back to Hogwarts, I don't know how much you know about the Slytherin students, but after my short relationship with Pansy, she was my girlfriend. She was in love, so was I, but the more we got on the more I realized something was different, wrong. Astoria was the one to warn me about her. She knew from a young age she was cursed with a blood malediction. Daphne was also cursed, but hers was different, they knew from the day she was born, hence why she was named Daphne." Draco told, he looked at his two friends, fully concentrated to the story he's telling.

"Daphne is a plant, beautiful and fragrant, but wholly poisonous. A nice and sweet girl unless she doesn't get what she wants. She goes insane. The parents knew about it, so from the first day of her life she got everything she ever wanted. If she doesn't it can escalate real quick, to very very dangerous places. I think the first time she was challenged in her life was when she got interested in me, but I was dating Pansy. The poor girl went through hell because of me. Daphne went so far she almost got expelled and couldn't stay in the girl's dormitory. Of course, I didn't know back then, no one dared to tell me because they were scared Daphne would take revenge, and they were right.

We soon started dating, I had everything to satisfy her needs, so we never had any big problems, until the dark lord started affecting our life more and more. I didn't have the time and energy to deal with the attention Daphne needed. That's when Astoria warned me, to end everything as nice as possible, even lie if I had to because her curse would make it a frightening and dangerous situation. I didn't know what it was about Astoria, but I fell in love. I lied to Daphne, told her I still loved her but could not be in a relationship with her because of my duties to the dark lord. That we would get married once the war was over, she believed me. In the meantime, I was struggling with depression and anxiety. Astoria was always the one to get me calm and back on my feet. She saw me in ways no one ever saw me, even my parents, in my most vulnerable moments she made sure I was loved and heard. She knew I wasn't loyal to the dark lord, I didn't want to fix the cabinet. But she guided me through every struggle as I had to do what I got to do." he got teary-eyed for a moment. Hermione didn't know this, she was feeling a bit uncomfortable, scared too much information was being shared.

Before she could react to anything, he scraped his throat and continued his story. "After Harry killed him, we ran away and got married. The word spread and Daphne heard. She was devastated and ready to kill us both for betraying her. I know what we did to her was not right, but we had to think about our own safety too. We soon realized how dangerous the curse really was, she found us the day we found out Astoria was pregnant. She broke into the wards late at night, Astoria pleaded Daphne to not kill her, that she was going to be an aunt, that she was carrying a baby. That's when Daphne changed entirely. She held us captive for a few weeks." he took a deep breath.

"One day, Astoria got really sick, she had a very high fever and didn't even have the energy to move or talk. I tried everything I could to make Daphne get us a healer. She didn't budge. Astoria gave birth that night, half alive, half gone, the moment Scorpius was born Daphne hold him like he was hers, she dropped the wards to bring him to a healer. She acted as if Scorpius was her child, our child. Astoria died before being able to hold, smell or look at Scorp. Daphne killed her. I grabbed Scorpius from her arms and apparated to the Manor when she was distracted. The magic here is too strong for her to enter. So I never left, ran my business from home, raised Scorpius here. Until he got old enough for school, and Alex and I were sure we changed the Malfoy protection spell enough for Scorp to be safe. I guess what we did wasn't enough." he finished his story.

"Malfoy, I'm so sorry. I didn't know you went through all of that."

"It's ok, Granger, don't worry about it. All I need in my life is Scorpius." Draco answered back.

"The good news about the fact that it's Daphne who has Scorpius is that she would never purposely hurt him," Alexander added. "She thinks of him like it's her son, Draco and her's. Any more questions, Hermione?" he wrapped up.

"No, not for now. I'll ask when I have them," she answered giving a modest smile in return to the two men in front of her.

"Still, Scorpius never met her and is smart enough to not trust strangers. He must feel very lost and scared, so we need to go prepared and make a plan to get him back as soon as possible." Draco added. "The location she calls ours is an empty cornfield not too far away from Hogsmeade. They are not many hiding spots, but with Potter's invisible cloak it should be fine for both of you," he said.

Alex and Hermione just nodded. Now all they had to do was train and plan to get Scorpius back.


End file.
